What’s the Difference Between Pinterest and Houzz?

The social media landscape is constantly changing. You hear about one network and develop a page for your business, when another one comes along and you start to get overwhelmed. Are you supposed to join every network that pops up? How on earth can you maintain a healthy level of engagement across so many networks? Is keeping up with social media going to be your full-time job? But just as the small business world is nuanced, social media is as well. The trick is to know which networks work best for getting your particular brand message out and communicating to your target audience that your business or product or service is the one they’re looking for.

Let’s take a look at Pinterest and Houzz. Although Pinterest is practically a social media mainstay, in the last few months, Houzz has picked up its efforts to make a stand in the social networking arena. Houzz is not just a shadow of Pinterest – it can actually provide even more targeted marketing opportunities for your business if you happen to be in the interior design, decorating, landscaping, architecture, home-building or real estate industries.

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with choosing Pinterest as your top priority. If you want to target a broader audience, Pinterest is a great choice. However, don’t discount Houzz if you think it’s just a smaller, more unpopular version of Pinterest. Both these platforms have some similarities, but there are also some key differences:

• Range of Topics Covered – As mentioned above, Pinterest covers a very broad range of topics. In fact, this is the biggest difference between these platforms. While Houzz specifically targets interior designing, remodeling, etc., Pinterest covers a lot of subjects, including exercise, food, fashion and more. So if you’re a professional architect, contractor, decorator and so on, Houzz is the perfect platform to grab an opportunity to display your work to a targeted audience.
• Level of Connectivity – One area where Houzz is much better than Pinterest is the level of connectivity. While Pinterest just allows users to look at pictures and click through to website pages, Houzz gives them an opportunity to connect with established design professionals. This can be very beneficial for users seeking guidance and help regarding home and landscape design and remodeling, and it gives you a chance to interact with your target audience.
• Interacting with Company’s Profile Page – Users on Houzz can post reviews on a company’s profile page. So far, this feature isn’t available on Pinterest.
• Connecting with Local Companies – There’s no doubt that you can find professionals from almost every field on Pinterest, but it can be difficult to find local companies. Houzz allows you to search for professionals in your area by breaking down the search list according to regions in almost every single state.
• Converting Leads -Since Houzz specifically targets customers who are interested in home remodeling, interior design and the like, the people who use the network are already interested in what your business has to offer. But if you want to keep up with big corporations who have a strong reputation, Pinterest will be a better choice.

There are certainly no rules that say you can’t do both. If you’ve got the time and inclination to engage on both networks, then do! However, if you’re already feeling spread too thin across social media, it’s a good idea to think critically about where you’re going to focus your efforts, who you’re trying to reach and how much return you’re seeing from the networks you already participate with.